Grammar
Requests and permission: can, could, may, and would
You are at a library and need a seat near a power outlet. Can I sit here? asks permission. Could you help me find a seat? asks another person to do something.
Choose can, could, may, or would to ask for permission or make a clear, polite request in an everyday situation.
Read and practice
Read the examples and try the written questions in this guide. Listening recordings are not available for this lesson yet.
Try the written questions
Could you help me with this bag, please? /kʊd juː help miː wɪð ðɪs bæɡ pliːz/
The short answer
Use Can I ...?, Could I ...?, or May I ...? to ask permission. Use Can you ...?, Could you ...?, or Would you ...? when you want another person to do something. Could and would usually make the request sound more polite.
Could you open the window, please?
Why it works: Could you asks another person to do something. Please makes the request warmer, but it does not change the grammar.
5 more examples
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Can I use your charger for a minute?
I is the subject because the speaker is asking permission for themself.
Not this:
You can usemy charger for a minute. What changes: This is permission that the speaker gives to another person. -
Could you send me the link?
Could you is a polite way to ask another person for an action.
Not this:
You could sendme the link. What changes: Without question order and a question mark, this can sound like a suggestion. -
May I speak to the manager, please?
May I is a formal or careful way to ask permission.
Not this:
I may speakto the manager later. What changes: This statement describes a possible future action; it does not ask permission. -
Would you carry this box with me?
Would you makes a polite request for help from another person.
Not this:
You would carrythis box with me. What changes: This word order is not the normal form for a polite request. -
Could I pay by card?
Could I asks whether the speaker is allowed to use a payment method.
Not this:Could I
paidby card? What changes: Use the base verb pay after could.
Read the full guide
First decide whether you need permission or help. For permission, begin with I: Can I leave early? For help from another person, begin with you: Could you check this address? Then choose a polite form that fits the situation and say what you need clearly.
Tell permission questions from requests
Look at the subject after the modal verb. Can I, Could I, and May I usually ask whether the speaker may do something. Can you, Could you, and Would you usually ask another person for help or action.
Can I leave my bike here?
The speaker wants permission to leave the bike, so the subject is I.
Can you watch my bike for a minute?
The speaker wants help from another person, so the subject is you.
Do you use I or you when you ask a friend to close the door?
Use you: Can you close the door, please?
Use can for everyday situations
Can is direct, friendly, and common. Use Can I when you need permission and Can you when you need help. Add please when you want a warmer tone, especially with someone you do not know well.
Can I take this seat?
Can I asks whether the speaker is allowed to take the seat.
Can you repeat that, please?
Can you asks the listener to repeat some information.
Complete the request: Can you ____ the lights off?
Use turn: Can you turn the lights off? The verb is in the base form.
Choose could for a softer request
Could often sounds less direct than can. It is useful when you are speaking to a customer-service worker, a teacher, or a person you do not know well. It does not mean that the request happened in the past.
Could I borrow your umbrella?
Could I asks for permission now. The modal could makes the request more careful.
Could you write that down for me?
Could you asks for help from the listener, and write stays in the base form.
Which is a polite request for help: Could I help you? or Could you help me?
Use Could you help me? Could I help you? offers help instead.
Use may for formal permission
May I is a formal or careful way to ask permission. You may hear it at a reception desk, in a meeting, or when a learner speaks to a teacher. In everyday conversation, Can I and Could I are often more common.
May I come in?
May I asks for permission before the speaker enters.
May I have your name, please?
This careful request is suitable in a service or professional setting.
Which word makes this formal: May I ask a question?
May is the formal permission word in this question.
Use would you for help and offers
Would you begins a polite request for another person to do something. It is not normally used for your own permission question. Use it when you want to sound careful while asking for help or an action.
Would you wait here for a moment?
Would you asks the listener to wait. The request sounds careful and polite.
Would you turn the music down, please?
Would you asks the listener to change the volume in a polite way.
Correct this permission question: Would I use the restroom?
Ask May I use the restroom? or Could I use the restroom? Would you is for a request to another person.
Keep the verb in its base form
After can, could, may, and would, use the base form of the next verb. Do not add to before the verb, and do not use a past form. This rule works in permission questions, requests, and offers.
Could you wait outside?
Wait is the base form after could.
May I use your phone?
Use is the base form after may.
Correct this request: Could you to call me later?
Write Could you call me later? Do not use to after could.
Before you go
Remember this
Ask permission with Can I, Could I, or May I plus a base verb. Ask another person for help with Can you, Could you, or Would you plus a base verb. Could and would often make a request more polite. Use please when it fits the situation, and end a direct request with a question mark.
Practice with the written examples
You can practice with the written questions in the Learn tab. Each answer includes an explanation.
Try the written questionsListening test not available yet
This lesson does not have the recordings needed for a listening test. Use the written questions in the guide to check your understanding.
Try the written questionsQuestions about "Requests and permission: can, could, may, and would"
How do I ask for permission in English?
Use Can I, Could I, or May I, followed by a base verb. Can I use your charger for a minute? is an everyday permission question. Could I pay by card? sounds a little more careful, and May I is more formal.
Can I use your charger for a minute?
What is the difference between Can I and Can you?
Can I usually asks permission for the speaker to do something. Can you usually asks another person to do something. Can I use your charger for a minute? asks permission, while Could you send me the link? asks for help.
You can use my charger for a minute.
Is could more polite than can?
Could often makes a request sound less direct, especially with people you do not know well. Could you send me the link? is a polite request. Can is also correct and is common in everyday conversation.
Could you send me the link?
When should I use May I?
Use May I when you want a formal or careful permission question. May I speak to the manager, please? fits a service or professional setting. In many everyday conversations, Can I and Could I are more common.
You could send me the link.
Why do requests use the base verb after can or would?
Can, could, may, and would are modal verbs, so the next verb stays in its base form. Say Could I pay by card? and Would you carry this box with me? Do not add to or a past ending after the modal.
May I speak to the manager, please?